The study proposes a co-ordinated investigation of the neurological, psychological, social and educational development of two major high-risk groups of children: shunted hydrocephalics and myelomeningoceles with and without hydrocephalus. The results of our past seven years of research into the intellectual development of these children reveal that if shunt function is maintained, the average IQ will not differ significantly from the theoretical population mean of 100. Significant perceptual-motor problems have been found in both groups, which now require explanation on an organic or experiential basis. We have also noted academic achievement which is often lower than IQ scores would predict; a logical extension of our past work will thus be the addition of standardized achievement tests to identify strengths and weaknesses, anxiety measurements, and analyses of auditory versus visual information processing. This information will be highly useful in curriculum planning for a unique group whose characteristics may be obscured in heterogeneous classes. A major thrust of this project will concern the applicability of selective treatment criteria for newborn myelomeningoceles. The neonatal assessment for each child will be carefully correlated with his detailed medical record, psychological, social and family information. An analysis of the costs of myelomeningocele per patient per year of life will determine the extent of financial hardship sustained by the family. An additional exploratory study will compare specific angiographic evidence of cerebral dysplasia in the Arnold-Chiari malformation (present in most myelomeningoceles) with measurable brain dysfunction.